THE ANNALS THE WORLD

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 948. After Cyrus' father Cambyses died in Persia, Cyaxares in Media held all the empire of the east. From this year, both Xenophon, (8. Inst.) reckons the 7 years of his reign, but the Holy Scripture from the records of the Medes and Persians, reckons this the first year. It states that in this year came that famous edict of his. Thus said Cyrus king of Persia:

``Into my hand hath God given all the kingdoms of the earth.''

949. In this year, the 70 years of the Babylonian captivity ended as foretold by Jeremiah and according to the prophecy of Isaiah who mentioned Cyrus by name. Isa 44:28 45:1-3 He gave permission to all the Jews dwelling anywhere in his empire to return into their own country. Those who returned he ordered to rebuild the temple of God. They could build it as large as they wished. Hag 2:3 They could use the resources from the king's treasury. Cyrus restored all the vessels of the house of God which Nebuchadnezzar had brought from there. 2Ch 36:22,23 Ezr 1:1,2,7 5:13,14 6:2,5

950. Cyrus made Sheshbazzar the captain of the Jews who returned to Jerusalem. According to Cyrus' orders, Sheshbazzar received from Methridates the treasurer all the vessels belonging to the temple. These were to be returned to Jerusalem. Ezr 1:7,11 5:14,15 Sheshbazzar was his Chaldean name but his Hebrew name was Zerubbabel. Ezr 3:8,10 5:16

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951. The Jews prepared to return to their country. The poor were given an allowance to help with the costs. Ezr 1:5,6 There were 42,360 of the children of the province or poor people of the Hebrews born in Chaldea who returned. Their captain was Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel or Salathiel and their high priest, Jehu, or Jeshua, the son of Jozadak. In addition there were 7,337 proselytes, man servants and maid servants who also returned. Ezr 7:1 Ne 7:67 12:1-9 However the total sum given in Ezra is only 29,818. In Nehemiah, the sum is 31,031. Neither of these tally to 42,360 but at the end of each list the total of 42,360 was said to be the number of the whole congregation. Ezr 2:64 Ne 7:66 To tally to 42,360 the Hebrews in their great Chronicle (cap. 29) tell us that we must include in this number, those of the other tribes of Israel, who came up out of the captivity with the Jews. For even at the end of the Jewish state, there was a remnant of the other ten tribes, Ac 26:7 not only of the dispersion, Jas 1:1 and at Jerusalem, 2Ch 9:3 Lu 2:36 and other cities of Judah 2Ch 11:16 31:6 but also of those who still lived on their lands. Shalmaneser did not take everyone away from the tribes, (see note on 3227 AM concerning the history of Josiah) but he left a remnant of them, in their own country, who were later, together with the Jews and Benjamites and Levites, carried away by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon and were now set at liberty and sent back again by Cyrus. After this first year of Cyrus, all the Israelites, are said to have dwelt in their own cities. Ezr 2:70 In the 6th year of Darius, they are said to have been present at the dedication of the Temple and to have offered there 12 he goats for the sin of all Israel. Ezr 6:16,17 When Christ preached the gospel in Galilee, Mt 14:14 he fulfilled the prophesy of Isaiah that the people of Zabulon and Naphtali would see a great light. Isa 9:1,2 The chief men of their father's families came to Jerusalem and offered according to their ability toward the rebuilding of the temple, 61,000 drachmas of gold, 5,000 pounds of silver and 100 priests robes. Both the priests and Levites and the rest of the people, lived in their own cities. Ezr 2:68-70

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952. On the first day of the seventh month in the feast of trumpets, the Israelites all came from their cities to Jerusalem and there built the altar. Every morning and every evening they offered the daily sacrifice to God and on the 15th day of the same month, they kept the feast of tabernacles. In addition, they provided materials and workmen for the building of the temple, as Cyrus had given them permission to do. Ezr 3:1-7

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953. In the second year, the second month, Jair, after their return from Babylon, they appointed Levites to oversee the work of the house of God. When they laid the foundation of the temple, the old men cried who 53 years earlier had seen the old temple standing. The young men greatly rejoiced to see the new temple going up. Ezr 3:8-13

954. The Cuthaeans, the old enemies of the Jews, who had previously been settled in Samaria by Esarhaddon, cunningly offered to join them in building the temple. When the Jews refused their help, they hindered the Jews all they could in the work and discouraged the people from completing the task. Ezr 4:1-4

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955. This was the first sabbatical year kept by the Jews, after their return from the captivity of Babylon.

956. The Samaritans by bribing certain courtiers of Cyrus, disrupted the Jews in their work of building the temple. Ezr 4:5 From this was the reason for the 3 weeks of mourning by the prophet Daniel. He continued his fast which was begun about the 3rd day of the 1st month in the 3rd year of Cyrus through all the time of the feast of Passover. Da 10:1,4 After this on the 24th day of the 1st month, while he stood upon the bank of Hiddekel, or the River Tigris, he had the vision of the kings of Persia, of Alexander the great and his successors and their kingdoms. This is recorded in Da 10:1-12:13 and was the last vision that he had shortly before his death.

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957. Amasis, as it seems, defected from Cyrus. The people of Egypt who were carried away formerly by Nebuchadnezzar, after 40 years in exile they were now sent back again by Cyrus into their own country. They returned to their old kingdom toward the end of the life of Amasis. Egypt was again a kingdom, very old and ancient indeed, but the basest of all others and of no longer much use to any other country. Eze 29:11-16 Jer 46:26 Xenophon, (8. Instit. Cyr.) and also in the prologue to his whole work, states that Cyrus had Egypt in his possession. All authors agree that it was later subdued by his son Cambyses. Hence, we gather, that in the intermediate time, they enjoyed their freedom.

958. It may be that when Amasis revolted from Cyrus, that when Hirom had been king of Tyrus for a full 20 years, (who was the last king mentioned by Josephus, in his catalogue of them) he was overthrown. In his place, they had governors set over them by other nations instead of being governed by men of their own country. For the very Punic names of those kings, show that they were all of the same country as Tyre. This situation was like the Egyptians who had been ruled by Amasis.

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 959. Cyrus died at the age of 70 years. He was first made general of the Median and Persian armies a full 30 years earlier. He took Babylon 9 years before his death and reigned for 7 years and a month or so.

960. Authors differ as to how he died. Herodotus (lib. 1. c. 214), Justin from Trogus (lib. 1. c. and Valer. Max. (lib. 9. c. 10.) say that he was slain in a fight against the Maslagetae or Scythians. He was decapitated by Tomyris their Queen and she threw him into a tub full of blood. She told him to satiate himself with blood with which he had so much thirsted after in his lifetime. Diod. Sic. (lib. 2.) states that when she had taken him prisoner, she crucified him. Ctesias (lib. 11) states that in a battle against the Derbicans, the nation bordering on Hyrcania, after he was wounded in the thigh by a certain Indian, he slew Amorraeus their king and his two sons. Three days later, he died. Johannes Malela of Antioch, from a forged book, attributed to Pythagoras of Samos, states that he was slain in a sea battle against the Samiaens. Xeno. (instit. l. 8.) reports that he died a natural death in his own country of Persia. He ordered his sons that they should wrap his body neither in gold nor silver, but in plain cloth, and bury him in an out of the way place. They were to call all his friends, Persians and others to his grave and having there presented them with whatever was fit to be given them at the funeral of a fortunate man, they should be dismissed. His tomb was made at Pasarges. This is stated by those who wrote the nobel acts of Alexander the Great, as Curtius, Plutarch, Arrian. According to Strabo (lib. 5 of his Geography), Aristobulus was sent by Alexander to see the tomb. He recites also this inscription found on his tomb.

``O man, I am Cyrus, who founded the Persian monarchy and was king of Asia; and therefore envy me not that I have a monument.''

961. Strabo, from Onesicritus cites a Greek epitaph written for him, (if any man will believe it), in Persian letters. It was:

``Here Cyrus I do lie, who king of kings was high''

962. It is of the same character with that one cited by Lucian, from the same Onesicritus in his discourse "De Longavis", of long lived men, that Cyrus missing at last those friends of his which his son Cambyse had taken away, he died for grief at the age of 100.

963. Cyrus left his kingdom to his eldest son Cambyses and to his younger son, Tanaoxaras, or Tanyoxareas, whom Herodotus calls Smerdis. Justin from Trogus calls him Mergis. Ctesias states he left the seigneuries or commanders, of Bactria, Choromnea, Parthia and Caramania. However, Xenophon, (Instit. l. 8.) states it was of the Medes, Armenians and Cadusians.

964. In the start of the kingdom of Ahasuerus (for by that name is Cambyses known in the language of the Scriptures) the Samaritans, who had before fought secretly to undermine the Israelites, now openly sent a letter to the king against the inhabitants of Judah and Jerusalem. Ezr 4:6 They knew very well, what difference there was between the father and the son's nature and disposition. Cyrus was naturally kind and loving to those who were under him and the other furious by nature and sudden in his resolutions. This is noted of him in Diod. Sic. in his Excerptu, published by Henr. Valesius, (p. 238, 249) with Herodotus (l. 3. c. 89.)

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965. This was the 2nd Sabbatical year held by the Jews after their return from Babylon.

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966. As Cambapheus an eunuch controlled the king of Egypt, likewise his first cousin, Isabat an Eunuch controlled Cambyses king of Persia. Cambapheus betrayed the bridges, passages and other things to the Persians when they promised him the government of Egypt for his trouble. (Ctes. Persicor l. 3.)

967. Following up on this information, Cambyses gathered an army and a navy. His army consisted of various other nations in his empire and of Greeks from Ionia and Eolia in Asia. His naval forces came mainly from the Sidonians and Cyprians. Polycrates, the king or tyrant of Samos, furnished him with 40 warships and he used as sailors all such as he suspected for enemies at home. He hoped they would die in Cambyses' service and never return home to bother him again. (Herod. l. 3. c. 1, 19, 44.)

968. Phanes of Halicarnaslus was a chief man among the aides of Egypt and well versed in their affairs. He hated Amasis and when he saw that Cambyses was preparing to fight against Egypt, he defected to him. He told Cambyses many secrets of the land of Egypt. When Cambyses was greatly perplexed as to how to cross the desert without proper water supplies, he advised him to send to the king of Arabia, to obtain permission to pass through his country for (Herod. lib 3. c. 4,7.) without his consent, no one could get to Egypt. (Herod. l. 3. c. 88)

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969. The king of Arabia made a league with Cambyses through the messengers that were sent to him. He sent all his camels laden with leather bags full of water to the places where Cambyses with his army was to pass. (Herod. lib 3. c. 9.)

970. When Cambyses came with his army into Egypt, he found Amasis had died recently after he had reigned 44 years. (Herod. lib 3. c. 9. & 10.) Diod. Sic. (l. 1. Biblioth.) states that he died when Cambyses began his war in Egypt in the later end of the 3rd year of the 63rd Olympiad. His son Psammenitus, (whom Ctesias calls Amyrteus) reigned 6 months. (Herod. l. 3. c. 14.) In this time it rained at Thebes, in the upper Egypt. This is taken for a good luck., (Herod. l. 3. c. 10.)

971. When the Persians passed those sandy dry deserts of Arabia, they came to the edge of Egypt, (Herod. l. 3. c. 11.)

972. When Cambyses came to besiege Pelusium, he placed cats and dogs and sheep, and birds called Ibides and all kinds of living creatures, which the Egyptians worship for gods, in front of his army. The Egyptians did not shoot at the enemy lest they hurt their own gods. Hence Cambyses took Pelusium, got an toe hold on Egypt, (Polyenus in the 7th book of Stratag.)

973. The Greeks and Carians mercenaries who came to help the Egyptians hated Phanes who was instrumental in bringing this foreign army to Egypt. They slew his sons before his eyes and after drinking their blood started fighting with him. (Herod. l. 3. c. 11.)

974. After a sharp encounter, many were slain on both sides and the Egyptians were routed. (Herod. l. 3. c. 11)

975. Cambyses sent a Persian herald up the river in a ship of Mitylene to Memphis, where the Egyptians had fled in great disorder and confusion.

976. The herald exhorted them to surrender but the men of the city sallied out against the ship, captured and destroyed it. They tore everyone on board limb from limb. They retired into the city and later endured the siege for a short time, (Herod. l. 3. c. 13.)

977. Arcesilaus, son of Battus the lame and of Pheretima his wife, surrendered Cyrene to Cambyses and agreed to pay him tribute. (Herod. l. 4. c. 165.) The inhabitants of Cyrene, the Barcei and the Libyans who bordered on Egypt were terrified with his success against their Egyptian neighbours. They submitted to him and sent their presents to Cambyses. Cambyses took what came from the Libyans graciously. The Cyrenians were so small and sent him only 500 minae of silver. He took it and threw it among the soldiers. (Herod. l. 3. c. 13. & 91.)

978. Ten days after Cambyses had taken Memphis, he tried to humiliate Psammenites. He had imprisoned him with other Egyptians in the suburbs of the city. In contempt of Psammenites, he sent his daughter with other maidens of the Egyptian nobility with pitchers to fetch him water from the river. He sent the young son of Psammenties with 2,000 more of the same age and all principal noble men's sons with ropes about their necks and bridles in their mouths to be shamefully put to death. He did this in revenge of those men of Memphis who destroyed the ship and murdered the Mitylenians he had sent to them. He ordered that for every Mitylenian who was killed, ten of the chief of the Egyptians should be put to death. The first to die was the son of Psammenites. Cambyses would have spared him but acted too late to do so. However, Psammenites lived peacefully later with Cambyses. At last when Psammenites was convicted of stirring up the people to a new rebellion, he drank bull's blood and died. (Herod. l. 3. c. 14,15.) Cresias states however that he was sent away prisoner to live in Susa.

979. Cambyses marched from Memphis and came with his army to the city Sais. When he came to the palace of Amasis, against whom he undertook this war, he had his body to be hauled from its vault and to be brought before him. He had its carcase whipped with scourges and all kind of reproach,and contumely done to it. Then he had it consumed with fire. (Herod. l. 3. c. 16 . and Diod. Sic, in his Excerpta; published by Hen. Valesius, p. 249.)

980. Cambyses conquered Egypt, in the 5th year of his reign. He ruled there for 3 years. (Jul. African. and Euseb. in Chronic. Grec. p. 17.) He killed 50,000 Egyptians in battle and sent away 7,000 as prisoners to Susa. (Ctesias)

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 981. Jamblicus reports that Pythagoras was among the rest taken to Babylon where he conversed with their wisemen. (Jambli. in his Life) Another writer of his life, namely Malchus, or Paphyrius, says, that at Babylon, he not only conversed with the other Chaldeans, but applied himself also to Zabratus who purified and cleansed him from the sins of his former life. This Zabratus is thought by some, to have been that Nazaratus of Assyria, whom Alexander, (Polyhistor I think) in his book of Pythagorical Opinions, infers that he was the teacher of Pythagoras. Some others mistaking the matter, judge him to have been the prophet Ezekiel, as Clement of Alexandra, (l. 1. Strom.) states. All this shows is that he did converse with the wise men of the Jews in Babylon. He later made use of many of their opinions in the writing of his Philosophy. These writers are of that opinion, Hermippus, in his first book of Pythagoras, quoted by Josephus (l. 1. cont. Apion.) and in his first book, of Law Makers, cited by Origen, (l. 1. cont. Celsum.) Aristobulus the Jew, a Peripatetic Phylosopher, in his first book to Phylometor, Clemens of (Alex. l. 1. Strom.). Eusebius (l. 13. Prepar. Evangel.) believes that the books of Moses were translated into Greek, before the Persian empire began. However it is far more likely that he got that part of his learning by talking with the Jews in Babylon. Pythagoras was familiar with Jewish writings according to Pyrphier in his Life, from Diogenes, "of the incredible relation made of Thule".

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982. Cambyses wanted to prepare a navy to go against the Carthaginians but gave it up. The Sidonians, upon whom he relied for naval service, refused to go against their own colony and kindred. Meanwhile, he sent for some of the Itchthyophgaies, from the city Elephantina. These were well versed in the Ethiopian language. He sent them as spies to the Ethiopians called Macrogis. These are generally a very long lived people and live in the parts of Africa south of Egypt, bordering the India Ocean and Red Sea. The spies went under the pretense of bearing gifts for their king and wishing to see The Table of the Sun. The king of Ethiopia in the presence of them, took his bow, and bent it and then unbent it again. He gave it them to carry to Cambyses, and asked them tell him that when his Persians should be able to easily bend such bows as those he should, then and not before, gather a huge army and fight with the long lived Ethiopians. (Herod. l. 3. c. 17.-25.)

983. Cambyses' full brother, Smerdis, or Tanyoxarces tried to bend this bow and came within two fingers breadth of the notch. None of the other Persians came that close. Out of envy Cambyses dismissed him and sent him to Persia. (Herod. l. 3. c. 30.)

984. In a rage, Cambyses ordered an expedition against Ethiopia without any provisions made for grain or food. Like a mad man, as soon as he had heard what his Ichthyophagites had said, he immediately marched away with all his own foot soldiers and ordered the Greeks to stay behind. (Herod. l. 3. c. 24.)

985. When he came as far as Thebez in Egypt, he culled out about 50,000 of his army and sent them first to rob the land, then to burn the Temple of Jupiter Ammon and to make slaves of all the inhabitants of the place. He marched on towards Ethiopia, (Id. ib. Diodor. Sic. in his Excerpta, published by Hen. Vales. p. 249.)

986. On that journey Cambyses subdued the Ethiopians who bordered on the lower parts of Egypt and lived in the city of Nisa. They kept the holy days to Bacchus. (Herod. l. 3. c. 97.) To Saba the chief house or palace of the king of the Ethiopians and the island where it stood, he called "Meroes" in memory of Meroe, who was his wife and his sister. (Strabo. l. 17. of his Geogr. Josephus. l. 2. Antiq. c. 10.) She had accompanied him into Egypt and died there. No other king of Persia before him had married their sister. Shortly after this, he married his older sister Atossa. (Herod. l. 3. c. 31.) After his death, she married Magus and after him, she married Darius Hystasphis. (Herod. l. 3. c. 68, 88.)

987. The army which went from Thebez against the Ammonians, travelled seven days over the sands and came to the city, Oasis. (This city was inhabited by those Samians, which were of the Eserionian tribe.) From there they came to a country called "the isle of the happy ones".

988. As they marched from there over the sandy plains and midway between Oasis, and Ammonia, it is said, that there arose a mighty strong wind out of the South while they were eating. It brought those shifting sands upon them and overwhelmed them all. (Herod. l. 3. c. 26. Just. l. 1. c. 9.) Plutarch in the Life of Alexander, says, that there were 50,000 men lost in that land being buried by the sand storm.

989. The army which with him against the Ethiopians, ran out of provisions after five days. When they had lost hope of any food, they cast lots and started to eat one another. When Cambyses saw this, he returned to Thebez, having lost much of his army. (Herod. l. 3. c. 25. Seneca, l. 2. c. 30.) Lucan in his "Of His Natural Questions", says,

And mad Cambyses, marching toward the east,
Came to the long-liv'd Ethiopians:
And wanting food, his own men up did eat;
And yet the head of Nile never found.

990. Cambyses returned to Memphis discharged his Greeks and shipped them home. (Herod. l. 3. c. 25.) He saw the Egyptians keeping an holy day because their god Apis had appeared to them. He thought they had done it for joy of his disastrous journey. He sent for Apis and killed it with his sword. He commanded all his priests to be scourged with whips and the rest of the Egyptians who were found keeping the holy day, were to be slain by his soldiers. Apis was wounded by him and died in the temple. The priests took the body of the beast and secretly buried it. (Herod. l. 3. c. 27-29.) Apis was a sacred bull worshipped in the temple of Ptah in Memphis.

991. The Egyptians say that Cambyses who was mentally unstable, now went stark mad. This first manifested itself when he killed his own brother. After he sent him to Persia, (as was said before) Cambyses dreamed that a messenger came to him from there who told him that Smerdis, his brother was sitting on the regal throne and touched the heavens with his head. He was astonished by this dream and immediately sent Prexaspes, his most trusted friend, to kill his brother Smerdis. When he came to Susa he had him murdered. Some say he took him on a hunting match; others report that he lured him along as far as the Red Sea and drowned him in it. (Herod. c. 23. c. 30, 36.) Justin based on Trogus, (l. 1. c. 9.) states that this charge was committed to Cometes, one of the Magi and that he did not murder Smerdes or Merges until after Cambyses was dead. Ctesias, disagrees with Herodotus. He says that Spendahates, one of the Magi, was scourged by Tanyaxares, that is, by this Smerdis' commander. He accused him to Cambyses of seeking to make himself king. By the advise of Spendahates, he was sent for from Bactria to Egypt. He was forced to drink bull's blood and died from it. Spendahates was sent back into Bactria. Because he looked like Tanyoxarces or Smerdis he ruled there in his place.

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 992. After Harpagus, Oroetes, a Persian, was made governor of Sardis and of all the provinces of Lydia, Ionia and Phrygia by Cyrus. He is said to have sent a messenger to Polycrates of Samos to ask him about a certain matter. When the messenger came, Polycrates was lying on his bed in his chamber with Anacreon the Teian sitting by him. He was that excellent lyrical poet of Ionia and who, as Clem. Alexand. says, was the first inventor of love songs. Polycrates totally ignored the messenger. Oroetes resolved revenge for this insult. He sent Myrtus, a Lydian the son of Gyges, with another message to Polycrates that for fear of Cambyses, he would defect to him with all his treasure. Polycrates heeded the message and quickly went to Oroetes in person with Democedes, a noted physician of Crotona in Italy. When he came as far as Magnesia, Oroetes took him and crucified him. He let the Samians who came with him go free. The rest of them including Democedes were made his slaves. (Herod. l. 3. c. 120-127.) Valer. Max.. (lib. 6. c. ult.) relates that he was crucified by Orontes (for so he calls him, with Tully, l. 3. de Finibius) who was governor under king Darius on the top of the mount Mycale. That is in that foreland of Ionia, which looks toward Samos. Darius at that time was one of the bodyguards to Cambyses and held no high office in the Persian empire. Herodotus states (Herod. l. 3. c. 139, 140.) that in Cambyses' expedition into Egypt, Syloson the brother of Polycrates, presented him with a most rich robe publicly at Memphis. Hence the saying: "Syloson's robe". He also says, that Polycrates came to a foul end. This happened when Cambyses was in Egypt, (Herod. l. 3. c. 120.) and Pliny assents also (Pliny l. 33. c. 1.) where he says that this happened in the 230th year after the building of Rome, which according to Varro was on the 64th Olympiad.

993. When Cambyses saw his wife Meroe grieving for her brother Smerdis, he killed her too. (Herod. l. 3. c. 31. 32.)

994. In the 7th year of Cambyses, the 225th year of Nabonasser's calendar, upon the 17th day of the Egyptian month Phamenoth, (July 16th.) one hour before midnight, the moon was eclipsed at Babylon. (Ptol. in his, Mag. Syntax. l. 5. c. 14.)

995. Cambyses shot Prexaspes' son, who was his cup bearer with an arrow. The next day he had 12 principal men of the Persians who had done him no harm, buried alive with their heads downward. He ordered that Croesus, who had been for some time king of Lydia to be executed because had in a fair and friendly manner admonished him not to do such things. He changed his mind before the execution but killed those whom he appointed to kill Croesus. Many similar mad pranks he played on Persians and his friends while he stayed at Memphis. He opened many of their sepulchres to see the bodies of those who lay buried there. He went into the temple of Vulcan where he laughed exceedingly and mocked his image. Another time he went into the temple of the Cabirie, where only the priests were to go. After jeering their images, he had them all burned. (Herod. l. 3. from c. 34-38.) The rest of their temples, he either burnt down, pulled down, defaced, or destroyed. He did the same to their obelisks. (Strabo. l. 17.)

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996. Patizithes one of the magi, who Cambyses had left to oversee his private estate at home, found out about the death of Smerdis. This was a closely guarded secret known only to a few Persians. He set on the throne his own brother, who was also called Smerdis and very similar in features to the dead man. He immediately sent messengers to all parts of the empire and to the rest of the army in Egypt, that from now on they should obey only Smerdes the son of Cyrus and not Cambyses. (Herod. l. 3. c. 61.) Justin (Trogus, l. 1. c. 9.) states that Cometes one of the magi who killed Merges or Smerdes, (to whom the kingdom rightfully belonged after Cambyses) set up his own brother Oropastes who also closely resembled Smerdes. However, Ctesias writes, that Bagabates the eunuch and Artasyras an Hyrcanian, who were with Cambyses in Egypt and of great authority under him took counsel while Cambyses was still living. They planned to set up as king Spendadates, one of the magi who also looked very much like Smerdes, when Cambyses died.

997. Cambyses sent to the Oracle of Butis. It answered that he should die at Ecbatane. Cambyses took this to be the Ecbatane in Media where all his treasure was.

998. As he stayed at Ecbatane in Syria, a messenger brought him word what the commandment of Patizithes was. When he heard of the conspiracy against him, he leaped on his horse, intending to march quickly with his army to Susa against the conspirators. As he was leaping, his sword fell out of its scabbard and ran into his thigh. On the 20th day after the accident, he sent for the nobles of Persia to come to him. He told them of the death of his brother and the treason of the magi against himself. He charged them that by no means were to allow the kingdom to return to the Medes for Magus was a Median. (Herod. l. 3. c. 73, 126.) Soon after this, his wound festered and he died when he had reigned only 7 years and 5 months. (Herod. l. 3. c. 62-66.) Josephus tells us that on his return from Egypt, he died at Damascus, (Antiq. l. 11. c. 3.) thus putting Damascus for Ecbatane in Syria as Herodotus had. Ctesias states that he came as far as Babylon and that there he was wounded and died. He wrote of his death and the signs leading up to it:

``When Cambyses was offering sacrifices, the beasts throats were cut and no blood came out. He was much amazed. Roxane bore to him a boy without a head and that amazed him more. The Magi told him that this portended that he should leave no successor of his own. His mother also appeared to him in a dream and seemed to threaten him with destruction, for his brother's death. This troubled him yet more than all the other signs. When he came to Babylon, he sat there whittling a little stick with a knife to pass the time. By chance he hurt a muscle in his thigh and died 11 days later. (Ctesias.) When he left Egypt, he left Aryander to govern it in his place.''

999. After Cambyses died, the Persians did not know that they had Magus for their king. They thought Cambyses' brother had indeed succeeded him in the kingdom. Perxaspes vouched for this and said that he never killed him nor was it in truth safe for him now to confess that he had killed a son of Cyrus. (Herod. l. 3. c. 66.) The ruse was easy to conceal for among the Persians it was proper that the king be rarely seen in public. (Justin. l. 1. c. 9.) So it came to pass, that this Magus or Smerdes, who impersonated Smerdes the son Cyrus, peacefully held the kingdom for 7 whole months, thus making up the 8th year of Cambyses' reign. During that time he spared no cost, to show all kinds of bounty and good will toward the subjects in all the empire. After he died Asia and all other nations except the Persians, mourned for him. He sent couriers throughout the empire and proclaimed three year's freedom from paying taxes and military service. He did this as soon as he took the title of king. (Herod. l. 3. c. 67.) He also took Atossa the daughter of Cyrus and all the rest of the wives of Cambyses. (Herod. l. 3. c. 68. 88.)

1000. Ammianus Marcellinus, (l. 23.) out of ancient books reports that after Cambyses' death, 7 Magi took over the management of the kingdom of Persia. Valer. Max. in his (9th book, c. 2. ) agrees with this also. Of them two were chief, named by Herodotus, (l. 3. c. 61. 78.) Patizithes, whom Trogus calls Cometes and his brother. He was king in name only by impersonating the son of Cyrus. He was called by Herodotus, Smerdis, by Eschylus, Mardus, by Ctesias, Spendahates, by Trous, Oropastes and in the scripture, Artaxerxes.

1001. The Samaritans sent letters to this Artaxerxes asking him to forbid the further building of Jerusalem. They said it was a rebellious and wicked place and if it was rebuilt, it would never pay tribute to the kings of Persia. Eze 4:7-16

3483a AM, 4192 JP, 522 BC

1002. Artaxerxes sent a letter forbidding the rebuilding of Jerusalem until he should so order. The Samaritans encouraged by this reply, came swiftly to Jerusalem and forced the Jews to stop building both the city and the temple, although Cyrus expressly ordered them to finish the temple. They stopped all work until the 2nd year of the reign of Darius. Eze 4:17-24

1003. While Artaxerxes held the kingdom, Oroetes the Persian, ruled at Sardis. He reproached Mitrobates, governor of Dascylium, in the continent of Asia for not having taken the Isle of Samos and annexing it to his government. In the lifetime of Polycrates, he took Mitrobates and his son Cranapes, both men of good esteem among the Persians and slew them. He committed other outrages also. He murdered a messenger sent from Darius because he told him something displeasing. (Herod. l. 3. c. 126.)

3483b AM, 4193 JP, 521 BC

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1004. Ctesias tells us that Isabates the eunuch, who had the charge of carrying the body of Cambyses into Persia told the plot of the Magi to the army. When he was pursued by them, he fled for safety into a temple. There they decapitated him. However, Herodotus says, that 8 months after Cambyses' death, the matter was brought first to light by the cunning of Otanes the son of Pharnaspes and later more fully explained by Prexaspes. When Prexaspes was in a certain tower, he called the people to him and from there declared to them that Cambyses ordered him to murder his brother Smerdes, the son of Cyrus and that they were being ruled by the Magi. When he had said this, he threw himself down headlong among them. (Herod. l. 3. c. 68, 75.) Justin from Herodotus and Trogus Pompeius, records Otanes discovery and the distruction of the Magi as follows:

``Ostanes (who is that Otanes) sent a messenger to his daughter, who was one of the concubines of the king and inquired whether it was a son of Cyrus who was king. She replied that she did not know nor could she ask the other concubines because they were kept in seclusion from each other. Then he advised her that when her turn came to lie with him, she was to feel his head as he lay asleep. For Cambyses, or (as Herodotus has it) Cyrus had Magus' ears cut off. Later she assured him that the king had no ears. He told the princes of Persia and swearing an oath with them, they conspired against the imposter king. There were seven of them involved in this. Lest the matter be discovered, they hid a dagger in their coats and immediately went to the place where the king was. They killed those who stood in their way. At last they came where the Magi were assembled. The Magi slew two of the conspirators. Herodotus states they were only wounded. They were all laid hold of by the Magi who outnumbered them. Gobryas held one of them about the middle. His fellows could not get near to Magus to kill him for fear of hurting Gobryas. He bade them kill the Magus through his body. Fortunately, they killed the Magus, and did not harm Gobryas. (Justin. l. 1. c. 9.)''

 1005. According to Ctesias, the names of these 7 Persians (whom Jerome on Da 11:2 calls the Magi) were these, Onophas, Iderues, Naradobates, Mardonisu, Barises, Artaphernes and Darius, the son of Bystaspes. Herodotus, calls them, Otanes, Hydarves, Megabyzus, Gobryas, Aspathines, Intaphernes and Darius. Darius had recently arrived there from Susa, where his father Hystaspes, was governor. Ctesias and Herodotus tell us that the Persians always kept a yearly festival upon the day when the Magi were overthrown.

1006. Six days after the Magi were overthrown, those 7 Persians met to decide what form of government suited Persia best. Otanes advised an aristocracy, Megabyzus, an oligarchy but Darius persuaded them to adopt a monarchy. Darius' opinion prevailed and was carried by majority vote. Otanes resigned all his rights to the other six on the condition that neither himself, nor any of his descendants should ever be subject to any of them or their posterity. Only his family among the Persians were left free and not subject to the king's command provided that they broke no law of the Persians. Since he was the first to act and organised the conspiracy, they thought it fit to heap all kinds of magnificence and honour upon him and his posterity. Each year he was presented with a Median Robe. For the election of a new king, they came to this agreement. Every one of them should get on horseback a little before sunrise and whoever's horse happened to neigh first after the sun was up would be king in Cambyses' place. The horse of Darius the son of Hystaspes, by the craft and subtilty of Oebaris, neighed first. All the rest leaped off their horses and adored Darius, crying, "God save the king." (Herod. l. 3. c. 80-88.)

1007. Each of the seven had the following privileges. First, they should come to court whenever they pleased and have free access to the king, (unless he was in bed with the queen) without any notice. (Herod. l. 3. c. 84, 118.) Secondly, that they might each wear his turban differently from all other men. The king only and his heir wore their turbans upright. (Seneca l. 6. de Beneficiis c. 31., Plutarch in the lives of Theistocles and Artaxerxes) and the rest of the nobility wore them hanging backward. It was granted to them and their posterity that they should wear them pointing forward because when they went to kill the Magi, they used this as a sign between themselves. (Plutarch in his Precepts of Government.) For Darius had given this as a sign for each to know one another by in the dark. They were to turn the buckle that fastened their turbans at the back and wear it on the front. (Polya. l. Stratag. 7. )

1008. The greatest privilege granted them was that although the king had a perpetual dictatorship over them, yet each man in turn would have a kind of tribunal power with him. I deduce this from the following. First, these conspirators foresaw that they would prove burdensome (and how I ask more than in this way?) to Darius, so they bond him with an oath which was most religiously observed among the Persians. Darius swore that he would never put any of them to death, either by poison, or sword, or by any violent way, or by starving them. (Valer. Max. l. 9. c. 2.) Secondly, for that Eschylus, who was in the fight against the Persians at Marathon names two kings successively between the slaughter of the Magi and the reign of Darius, Maraphis and Artaphrenes. The first seems to be the one who Ctesias calls Mardonius and the other Artapherne. Lastly, for that in Ezra, in the edict of Darius, in the second year of his reign, for the rebuilding of the temple, we find Artaxerxes, also called by the name of "king of Persia", Ezr 6:14 to have given his consent to it in his 2nd year of his reign for the rebuilding of the temple. It is hard to understand this to mean any other than Artaphernes.

1009. In the beginning of his reign, Darius took Atossa the daughter of Cyrus, who had formerly been married to his own brother Cambyses and afterward to the Magus and made her his wife. He purposed to better establish his kingdom by marrying into royalty so that the kingdom might not seem to move to another family but rather remain in the family of Cyrus. (Herod. l. 3. c. 88. l. 7. c. 2. & Justin from Trogus l. 1. c. 10.) And he was first called Ochus, (Valer. Max. l. 9. c. 2.) yet later when he took over the kingdom of Cambyses, he took his surname also. So I conceive, that both he was that Achash-veroth, or Ahasuerus, which in the story of Esther, is said to have reigned from India to Ethiopia, over 127 provinces. His chief wife Atossa, was none other than Vashti as mentioned in the book of Esther.

1010. Ochus still continued governor at Sardis and kept a thousand Persians for guards about him. When Darius sent his royal letters by Bagaeus the son of Arton to the soldiers there, they killed him. His goods were confiscated and brought to Susa. Democedes, whom he had made his slave, a physician of Crotona, (Herod. l. 3. c. 127-129.) was also taken to Susa.

[Soldier4Christ]

 1011. It happened later that when Darius was hunting he fell from his horse and wrenched his foot badly. The Egyptian surgeons sought to straighten it. Their methods were so violent that he could not sleep for seven days. On the 8th day, Democedes was brought in shackles to him, in a poor and ragged condition. He used such Greek somentations, that the king quickly went to sleep again and in a short time recovered. He was rewarded with rich gifts by the king and his wives, dwelt in a good house in Susa and sat at the table with the king. He had everything that his heart could wish except he was forbidden to go to Greece again. When Darius would have hung his Egyptian physicians because a Greek could do more in his cure than they all, Democedes obtained their pardon from the king. There was a certain fortune teller of Elis, who came in the company with him and had followed Polycrates to Magnesia and was brought to Susa among the rest of Oroetes' slaves. Democedes obtained his freedom. (Herod. l. 3. c. 129, 130, 132.)

1012. It happened later that Atossa, the daughter to Cyrus and wife of Darius had an ulcer in her breast. After it was lanced, it spread further and further. When Democedes had cured her of that sore, he prevailed upon her, to have the king to make war on Greece. Darius presently called 15 choice men, all Persians. He commanded them to follow Democedes and by his directions to spy out all the maritime places of Greece and bring him back again with them to him. They went into Phoenicia and from there to Sidon. There they outfitted themselves with ships and other provisions and sailed to Greece. They viewed all the seacoasts of Greece and drew maps of it. They were the first Persian spies that ever came to Greece. When they had viewed the most famous cities and places in the heart of Greece, they passed from there to Tarentum in Italy. From here Democedes stole away to Crotona where his own home was and there marrying the daughter of Milo Crotoniates, that famous wrestler. He did not return any more to Darius. (Herod. l. 3. c. 133-138., Athanaus, l. 12. Deipnosoph. and Aelian. Var. Histor. l. 8. c. 17.)

3484a AM, 4193 JP, 521 BC

1013. This was the third sabbatical year held by the Jews after their return from Babylon.

3484c AM, 4194 JP, 520 BC

1014. Mordecai the Jew, is said to have had a dream in the Greek additions of /APC Est 11:1-12 on the 1st day of the month Nisan, in the 2nd year of the reign of Artaxerxes the Great (for Ahasuerus or Darius the son of Hystaspes) concerning a river signifying Esther and two dragons portending himself and Haman, /APC Est 10:4-13

1015. In the second year of king Darius, which was in the 65th Olympiad, Haggai the prophet reproved the idleness of the Jews for not rebuilding of the temple. For not doing this was the cause of crop failures and other plagues which continually happened to them between the first and third Sabbatical years. He earnestly persuaded them to change there ways. Then, Zerubbabel, the governor of the Jews and Joshua the high priest and all the people earnestly started to rebuild the temple on the 24th day of the same month. Hag 1:1-15

3485a AM, 4194 JP, 520 BC

1016. On the 21st day of the 7th month in the same year Haggai encouraged the Jews to go on with the work with a promise of God's presence and blessing on them in it. Although the beginnings of this present structure did not compare with its glory 69 years earlier, he told them the Messiah, who was born 516 years later, would be first shown in the temple and of the peace which would flow to all nations. If they consider that fact, then they must acknowledge that the glory of this temple will excel the beauty of the former. Hag 2:1-9

1017. In the 8th month of the 2nd year of Darius, Zechariah the son of Barachiah exhorted the people to repentance. Zec 1:1-6

1018. On the 24th day of the 9th month of the same 2nd year, about halfway between seedtime, (which immediately followed the end of the sabbatical year,) and the harvest, the temple began to be built on its old foundation by Zerubbabel and Joshua the high priest, with the assistance of Haggai and Zechariah the prophets. Ezr 5:1,2 Hag 2:10,18,19

1019. On the same 24th day, the two last prophecies of Haggai, were revealed to him. One vision concerned the end of those plagues. The other was about the overthrow of various kingdoms and the exaltation of Zerubbabel. Hag 2:10-23

3485b AM, 4195 JP, 519 BC

1020. Tatnai, governor of the countries of this side the river, Shetharboznai, and the Apharsachites their associates came to Jerusalem to hinder the work of the temple. They asked the chief of the Jews by whose command they did it. They answered that they did it by the authority of the edict of Cyrus, and went on with their work. Ezr 5:3-5,13,16 The laws of the Medes and Persians were perpetual and unalterable. Da 6:8,12 Es 1:19 8:8 Therefore it was lawful for the Jews to proceed in the work without expecting any new order about it.

1021. Their enemies sent a letter containing the Jew's answer to Darius and desired that search might be made in the records at Babylon. They wanted to see if there were any such grant made by Cyrus or not and desired to know the king's further pleasure concerning this.Ezr 5:5-17

1022. The work was thus interrupted and the famine continued in Judah because the grain was not yet ripe. On the 24th day of the 11th month Sebat, in the 2nd year of Darius, the prophet Zechariah had a vision of horsemen galloping up and down over the face of the whole earth which was at rest and quiet. When the prophet asked what it meant, God made a gracious answer with many comforting words to the angel who entreated God to cease his anger and fury against the Jews, Jerusalem and cities of Judah. These 70 years are to be reckoned, from the coming of the Assyrians and the last siege laid to Jerusalem. (See note on 3415 AM) Jer 34:1 Eze 5:12,13 Zec 1:1-3:10 This exhortation which is read in, Zec 2:6,7 was sent to the Jews still remaining in Babylon. They were told to get out as fast as possible to avoid that calamity, which a while later Darius brought upon Babylon when he took it.

1023. The edict of Cyrus for the rebuilding of the temple was found at Achmetha, or Ecbatan, in the province of the Medes. Darius sent this and a second command in favour of the Jews to Tatnai and his fellows. They were ordered not to hinder the work of the Lord's house but help it along. The costs of the project were to be taken from the king's tribute. They were to pay the costs for the daily sacrifices that were to be offered by the priests at Jerusalem. With this new command and the encouragement of Haggai and Zechariah, they enthusiastically completed the work. Ezr 6:1-14

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 1024. I think that at this time, Artaxerxes, who Ezr 6:14 signed with Darius in this edict and shared power with him in ruling the kingdom was one of the 7 princes of Persia who slew Magus. That is he who Eschilus, (in Persis) calls Artaphrenes Hellanicus, (as his Scholiast terms him), Daphernes. According to Ctesias, Artaphernes and Herodotus, he is Intaphernes. Therefore, according to the privilege granted by Darius of seeing him without notice, he was detained by the doorkeepers of the bedchamber who told him that the king was asleep with the queen. He thought they lied to him and drew his scimitar and cut off both their ears and noses, tied the reigns of a horse about both their necks and sent them running. When they came to the king they showed him what they had suffered and why. The king sent for the rest of the seven princes individually, fearing that this might have been done by the common consent of them all. When he found this not to be the case, he executed Intaphernes and all his sons except the eldest whom he spared at his mother's petition. Herodotus relates this matter (Herod. l. 3. c. 118, 119.) as a thing that happened shortly after the execution of the Magi. However, Valer. Max. following other authors, (l. 9. c. 2.) tells us, that finding himself checked by these princes, put them all to death by a newly devised kind of punishment. He says that he made a lower room and filled it with cinders and supported the room over it with only one post. When he had feasted and filled them with food and drink, he put them all into that upper room. When they were all fast asleep, he had the post that supported the room removed and they all fell into the cinders in the lower room and died.

1025. Now though it be not very likely that they perished in this manner, yet is it very credible that he put them out of the government of the kingdom, and hence eased himself of their heavy yoke.

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1026. And from that time on, Darius was an absolute monarch. He is called Ahsuerus in the Scriptures. Therefore Ahsuerus, made a feast in the 3rd year, reckoned from the beginning of his reign in his palace at Susa. He wanted to show the glory of his kingdom and magnificence of his state. He invited all the governors and great men of his dominions. The feast lasted 180 days. Es 1:2-4 Pliny (l. 6. c. 27.) states that Susa was built by this Darius. This is also called Elian, (Pliny l. 13. de Anima l. c. 59.) and was embellished with magnificent palaces by him. Herodotus. (l. 5. c. 49.) tells us, that he made this his home and kept all his treasure there.

3486 AM, 4196 JP, 518 BC

1027. After this half year banquet was over, there followed another one lasting seven days. Everyone in Susa was invited. The men were sitting with the king in the court of the garden of the king's house and the women were within the palace itself with Vashti the queen, (who is Atossa, the daughter of Cyrus.) Es 1:5-9

1028. On the last day of this feast, the king being somewhat drunk, wanted to show off the beauty of his queen to the men and sent for her to come to him. She refused and by the advise of Memucan had her divorced. He was one of the seven wise men of the Medes and Persians who knew the laws and statutes of those countries. For these were the king's judges, which judged in all causes arising among the Persians and revealed all cases in point of law. (Herod. l. 3. c. 14, 31. Plutarch in the "Life of Artaxerxes") They made a law that every man after this should be master in his own house. Es 1:10-22

1029. After this a search was made for all the fair damsels that were to be found in the empire to find a new queen for the king to replace Vashti. Among the ones selected, was Hadassah, a damsel of the Jews, who was also called Esther; the daughter of Abichajile, a woman of Benjamin. Es 2:1-8

3487a AM, 4196 JP, 518 BC

1030. In the 4th year of Darius, the 4th day of the 9th month, called Chisleu, the Jews through Sharezer and Regemmelech consulted with the priests and prophets concerning the appointed fast to be held on the day of the destruction of the city and temple of Jerusalem. God answered them that those fasts of the 5th and 7th months which they had observed for 70 years displeased him and reminded him of their obstancy and sins which caused that terrible desolation in the first place. Zec 7:1-14 From the destruction and the death of Gedaliah two months later (which was the reason for the fast in the 7th month), to the very time of this prophecy, we, in our Chronology, count 70 years.

1031. In Zec 8:1-23, God tells them that he would restore Jerusalem and put an end to all their former miseries and that he would change their fasts into mirth and gladness. These fasts were:

1. 4th month, 9th day when the city was taken
2. 5th month, 10th day when the temple was burnt
3. 7th month when Gedaliah was murdered and they were scattered among the nations
4. 10th month, 10th day when Nebuchadnezzar besieged the city under Zedekiah.

3489 AM, 4199 JP, 515 BC

1032. Toward the latter end of the 6th year of Darius on the 3rd day of the 12th month, called Adar, the temple was finished. At the dedication, the Israelites who returned from the captivity, celebrated with great joy and many sacrifices. The priests and Levites performed their offices and duties in the temple. Ezr 6:15-18

1033. On the 14th day of the 1st month, they joyfully celebrated the first passover in the second temple and kept the feast of unleavened bread for seven days. For God had turned the heart of Darius, king of Assyria toward them. Ezr 6:19,22 After a 20 month seige, he took Babylon, by the help of Zopyrus. He could now rightly be called king of the Assyrians as well as the Persians. (Herod. l. 3. in fin. & Justin at the end of his book.)

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1034. When Esther's turn came to be brought to the king Ahasuerus, she was brought from the Seraiglia to the king's chamber by Hegai the eunuch. Es 2:12-15

``The women in Persia, come round in their turns, to their husband's beds.'' (Herod. l. 3. c. 69)

1035. In the 7th year of Ahasuerus' reign, in the 10th month called Tebeth, when Esther came to the king, she found grace and favour in his eyes above all the other damsels. He put the crown of the kingdom upon her head and made her queen in the place of Vashti. Es 2:16,17 From this I gather that as Vashti was Atossa, so Esther was the one Herodotus called the virgin Artystone. He said that Darius loved with her more than all his wives and he made a solid gold statue of. (Herod. l. 3. c. 88. l. 7. c. 69.) Hadassah, which was another name given to Esther sounds much like Atossa. Herodotus makes Artystone to have been Cyrus' daughter and Atossa's sister. We do not know whether Herodotus was not so well skilled in the Persian genealogies or that the Persians themselves for very envy concealed the name of Esther.

1036. In honour of his new marriage, Ahasuerus made a most sumptuous feast for all his princes and servants and called it Esther's feast. He eased the provinces of many taxes and gave gifts according to the wealth of so great a king. Es 2:18

1037. The 19th Jubilee.

3491a AM, 4200 JP, 514 BC

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 1038. Haman, the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, of the tribe of the Amalekites, hated the Jew Mordecai because he would not fall down and adore him as others did. He resolved for his sake to be revenged of all the Jewish nation (which was always at odds with his De 25:19) and to destroy it. To find a good time to do this, he cast pur, that is, lots before him on the first month Nisan, in the 12th year of king Ahasuerus. The lot fell on the 12th month Adar. Es 3:1-7

1039. For vacuous reasons he offered Ahasuerus 10,000 talents of silver, (which the king would not accept) and obtained a grant from him to destroy the Jews. Es 3:7-11

1040. On the 13th day of the first month, the king's edict was proclaimed in Susa and copies of it were dispatched by carriers into all the provinces of the empire. All Jews without respect to sex or age on the 13th day of the 12th month Adar were to be killed. Es 3:12-15 When this happened, Mordecai, Esther and all the Jews, humbled themselves before the Lord, by fasting and prayer. Es 4:1-17 In memory of this their posterity to this day observe a solemn fast, upon the 13th day of the month Adar, which they call Esther's fast.

1041. Esther went to the king in gorgeous apparel and was graciously received by him. She invited the king to a banquet. Meanwhile, Haman was busy having a gallows made for Mordecai. Es 5:1-14

1042. One night when Ahasuerus could not sleep, he had the records read to him. It was found that two of his servants, Bigthan and Teresh his doorkeepers, had plotted his death and that Mordecai had revealed this conspiracy to him. Thereupon he ordered that Mordecai should be highly honoured publicly by none other than Haman himself. Es 6:1-14

1043. Shortly after this, Haman was hung on the gallows he made for Mordecai. Es 7:1-10 Haman's house was given to the queen. Mordecai, her uncle who had raised her, had daily honours bestowed upon him. Es 8:1,2,15-17

1044. On the 23rd day of the month Sivan, there was an edict proclaimed at Susa and copies of it sent away speedily by carriers into the 127 provinces. It stated that the Jews on the 13th day of the month Adar, which was the day appointed for their massacre, could defend themselves and to kill any who attacked them. They could keep the spoil of any man killed. In Susa and in all the provinces there was great rejoicing among the Jews. People in various countries became Jews. Es 8:9-17

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1045. Happias (twenty years before the fight at Marathon, in which he served on the Persian side) was now an old man. He was expelled from Athens by the Lacedemonians and the faction of the Alemaeonidae. He left the Athenians, and went first to Sigeum and from there sailed to Lampsucus, to his son-in-law Aeanpias' father and from there went to Darius. (Thucid. l. 6.) Now Pisistratus, the son of Hippias, had committed Segeum in Troas to Hegesistratus' base son. This was a place for Hippias and later for others of the family of Pisistratus to escape to when in trouble. (Herod. l. 5. c. 65, 91, 94)

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1046. Upon the 13th day of the 12th month Adar, the Jews killed all those who intended to kill them by Haman's decree. In Susa and the palace, they killed 500 men together with Haman's ten sons. In the rest of the provinces, they killed 75,000 men but touched not one penny of their goods. Es 9:1-16

1047. On the 14th of the same month, the Jews in the provinces stopped killing their enemies and had a feast. They at Susa were granted one more day of vengeance by the king. They slew 300 more of their enemies; and hung the carcasses of Haman's ten sons on the gallows. Es 9:13-19

1048. On the 15th day, Jews who lived in Susa made merry and feasted. Es 9:18

1049. Mordecai began the custom of keeping a holiday in remembrance of Purim on the 14th and 15th days of the month Adar. This was established by Esther. Es 9:23-30 This is the Jew's Shrovetide, when they read the history of Esther. As often as the name of Haman is read, they rap and make a noise with their hands or mallets upon the desk in their synagogues.

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1050. In the isle of Naxos, some of the rich were expelled by the poor. They resorted to Aristagoras, son of Molpagoras and son-in-law and first cousin by the mother's side, to Histiaeus, Tyrant of Meletus. Histiaeus had left Aristagoras governor there in his place when Darius had honoured him by taking him to Susa. Aristagoras told the matter to Artaphernes, son of Hystaspes and brother to Darius, governor of Ionia, who lived at Sardis. He persuaded him to take over for the king, Naxos, Paros and Andros and the rest of the Cyclades, all dependents of Naxos. Darius at Susa liked the idea and next spring he furnished 200 ships for that war. (Herod. l. 5. c. 30-32.)

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1051. Artaphernes, made Megabates a Persian and a close cousin to him and Darius, commander-in-chief of the Persian army. He ordered him to go to Miletus with his fleet of 200 ships. He was to join forces with Aristagoras and the Ionian army, which he did. They sailed from there to Chios. A disagreement occurred between Aristagoras and Artaphernes, when they had spent four months in the siege of Naxos. Nothing came of the seige and each returned home again, accomplishing nothing. (Herod. l. 5. c. 32-34.)

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1052. The 70 years had elapsed from the taking of Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar. This was the number of years of the bondage of that city as stated in. Isa 23:15,17 After this time, it seems they lived in freedom from any foreign subjection, until the time it was again taken by Alexander the Great.

1053. Aristagoras feared what might happen to him because he had not been able to take Naxos. He had no money to pay his army. He began to think of revolting from the Persians. It happened that exactly at that time, a messenger came from Histiaeus in Babylon. His message was written in letters made with hot irons upon the flesh of his head and now overgrown with hair. He advised Aristagoras to defect from Darius and cause all Ionia to revolt, if he could. (Herod. l. 5. c. 35. Polya. Stratag. l. 1.)

1054. Aristagoras told this to his friends and persuaded them to side with him. Hecataeus the historian tried in vain to prevent them from rebelling against the king of Persia. The conspirators sent Iarrogaras to Myletus to the army, which upon their return from Naxos, remained there and by a stratagem, won over all the principal commanders of their fleet.

1055. Aristagoras, now publicly revolted from Darius. He made a fair show of a kind of liberty to the Milesians. He took away the rulers that were in some cities of Ionia. He then went to the Lacedemonians to ask for their help but they flatly refused. (Herod. l. 3. c. 36-38, 49-51.)

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 1056. In the 20th year of the reign of Darius, 245 of Nabonassar's era, on the 28th day of the month Epiphus, according to the Egyptian calendar, (November, 29) there was an eclipse of the moon at Babylon ending about midnight. (Ptol. Mag. Syntax. l. 4. c. 9.)

1057. The Lacedemonians sent to Sigeum for Hippias the son of Pisistratus. He went to Athens on the hope they gave to him that he may be restored to power. This was all in vain and returned to Asia. He accused the Athenians of many things to Artaphernes, hoping to bring Athens under the subjection of Darius, (Herod. l. 5. c. 91, 96.)

1058. When the Athenians understood that Hippias had defamed them to Artaphernes, they sent their messengers to Sardis to persuade the Persians not to give credit to those outlaws of the Athenians. However, Artaphernes advised them that if they loved themselves and their own safety, they should call home again and receive Hippias. They refused any such conditions. It happened that Aristagoras the Melesian returned empty handed from Sparta he came to Athens and there obtained 20 ships to aid the Ionians in their war against the Persians. They made Melantho an eminent man in Athens commander. (Herod. l. 3. c. 96, 97.) This fleet, as Herodotus (Herod. l. 3. c. 98. ib.) has well noted, was the beginning of all the trouble between the Greeks and Persians. This was the beginning of all the wars which occurred between the Greeks and the Persians and which ended in the ruin of the Persian Empire.

1059. When Aristagoras returned to Miletus, he persuaded the Paeones to return to their own country. Megabuzus the governor of Thracia had carried them away from their own country on the banks of the River Strymon into Phrygia and by the authority of Darius settled them there. They took with them their wives and children and went away to the seaside. Some settled there for fear of going any farther. The rest went to Chios, from there sailed to Lesbos and to Doriscus. From there, they went by land into their own country. (Herod. l. 5. c. 98.)

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1060. The Athenian fleet arrived at Meletus. Five triremes of the Eretrians came with them to help the Athenians. There Aristagoras remained. He sent his own brother Charopinus commander over the Milesians and Helmophantus commander over the rest of the Ionians to fight against Sardis. The Ionians with the Athenians and Eretrians sailed to Ephesus. They left their ships at Coresus, a port of the Ephesians and marched to Sardis. They took and burnt it all except for the citadel which Artaphernes himself kept. They even destroyed the temple of Cybele. When the Lydians and Persians united forces they defended and held the market place through which ran the River Pactolus. The fearful Ionians retired to the hill Timolus next to the market and fled to their ships by night. The Persians who dwelt on that side the river Halys, gathered their forces and pursued them. They overtook them near Ephesus, fought and routed them. Many were killed including Enalcidas captain of the Eretrians. He won many garlands in many of their games and was highly commended in the poetry of Simonides. They who escaped from the battle, scattered into their various cities. The Athenians abandoned the Ionian cause from that time on, although they were earnestly entreated to help the Ionians by Aristagoras. (Herod. l. 5. c. 99-103.)

1061. Onesilus disposed of his older brother Gorgus, king of the Salaminians, and forced him to flee over to the Medes for help. Onesilus caused the whole island of Cyprus to defect from the Medes except for the people of Amathusa. When he was besieging that city, Darius received news of the burning of Sardis by the Athenians. He was very angry with the Athenians and ordered one of his attendants that as often as ever he sat eating, he should remind him three times of it by saying, "Sir, Remember the Athenians." Heedlessly, he sent away Histiaeus, the brother of that Aristagoras from Susa to Meletus who later became the ringleader of the Ionian rebellion against him. (Herod. l. 5. c. 104-106.)

1062. The Ionians sailed into the Hellespont and took Byantium with other cities in those parts. When they sailed from there, they caused many of the cities of Caria to join with them in this war against the Persians. When the city Caunus heard of the burning of Sardis, they joined them when before this had refused to. (Herod. l. 5. c. 103.)

1063. At Clazomenae, which was an island but now joined to the continent of Ionia, by a neck of land, (Strabo. l. 1.) Anaxagoras the philosopher, son of Hegesibulus was born (Olym. 70.) according to Diogenes Laertius in his life, from Apollodorus' Chronicle.

1064. While Onesilus and his army beseiged Amathusa, He received news that Artybius, a captain of the Persians, was heading to Cyprus with a very large army. Onesilus sent to the Ionians for help and they immediately sailed to Cyprus with a large fleet. The Persians left Cilicia and landed in Cyprus. They marched to the city of Salamis and sent the Phoenicians with their ships to take the point of a promontory in the island called, Claves Cyprus, i.e. the keys of Cyprus. A naval and land battle ensued. At sea that day, the Ionians behaved valiantly, especially the Samians and defeated the Phoenicians. On land while the rest were busy fighting, first Stesenor, tyrant of the Curii, betrayed his companions and then presently the men of Salamis who fought in chariots, did likewise. The whole army of the Cypriots were routed and many were killed. Among the dead was Onesilus, the author of this war and Aristocypius, king of the Solians, son of that Philocyphrus. When Solon was at Cyprus, he greatly extolled him in his poetry more than all the other tyrants. When the Ioninas heard that Onesilus was slain, and the rest of the cities of Cyprus were besieged and that Salamis welcomed back Gorgus their old king, they quickly returned to Ionia. Of all the cities of Cyrpus, Soli held out the longest. After four months, the Persians undermined the wall around the city and took it. Hence the Cypriots paid dearly for their one year of liberty and were reduced again to slavery. (Herod. l. 5. c. 108-116.)

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1065. The Persian leaders, Daurises, Hymaees and Otanes at Sardis who had married the daughters of Darius pursued the Ionians who had helped in the attack against Sardis. After they had routed them near Ephesus and driven them aboard their ships, they divided the rest of the cities among themselves so they could conquer them. (Herod. l. 5. c. 116.) Daurises subdued the lands adjoining to the Hellespont and took in five days the five cities, Dardanus, Abydus, Percote, Lampsacus and Paesus. He was on his way from there to the city Parios when he received news that all Caria had revolted from the king and joined with the Ionians. He abandoned his plan to take Parios and marched with all his army to Caria. (Herod. l. 5. c. 117.) Hymaees subdued the lands about Propontis and took the city of Cios in Mysia. When he heard that Daurises marched from Hellespont to Caria, he left Propontis and marched into Hellespont. (Herod. l. 5. c. 122.) Artaphernes, the governor of Sardis and Otanes the third commander attacked Ionia and part of Aeolia. In Ionia, they took the city of Clazomenae and in Aeolia, the city Cuma. (Herod. l. 5. c. 123.) After this, Anaxagoras with his men met together to decide on a place to flee to. In this meeting, Hecataeus the historian advised them to move to the isle of Leros and fortify it. They should stay there until it was safe to return to Miletus. Aristagoras advised them to sail rather to a place called Myrcinus, a city of the Edons. These people dwelt on the bank of the river Strimon which his own brother Histiaeus had formerly built. Aristagoras committed the government of Miletus to Pythagoras and with a group of volunteers he sailed from there into Trace and took control of the area he had planned to. (Herod. l. 5 c. 124-126.)

1066. When Histiaeus, the Tyrant of Miletus, was sent away from Susa by Darius, he came to Sardis. Artaphernes charged him with being the author of all the unrest and rebellion in Ionia. He escaped by night to the sea coast and sailed over into Chios. The people thought that he had been sent there by Darius to enlist their support against the Greeks and they put him in irons. When they understood that he came to help the Greeks, they quickly set him free. He immediately sent a message to Sardis, by Herminppus of Atarne, to persuade some Persians to revolt. When Artaphernes got wind of this when he captured the messenger, he killed those Persians. When this plot failed, Histiaens had the Chios escort him back to Miletus. The Milesians were glad to be rid of Aristagoras and did not want another tyrant in his place. When Histiaeus tried to secretly get into the city by night, the Mileasians wounded him in the thigh. When he was expelled from there, he returned again to Chios, (Herod. l. 6. c. 1-5.)

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1067. Daurises the Persian led his army against the Carians. They met at a place called Columnae Albae or the White Pillars, near the river Marsyas. Pixodorus the son of Mausolus, a man of Cyndya, who had married the daughter of Sienoses the king of Cilicia, advised then to cross the river Maeander. They should have the river behind them and await the enemy there and fight from this good position. The opposite opinion prevailed that the Persians should fight with the river at their backs. This would cut off all retreat and force the Persians to fight harder. When the Carians and Persians fought near the river Marsyas, the battle was fierce and long. The Persians lost 2,000 men and the Carians 10,000. The Carians fled to Labranda to the temple of Jupiter and there decided what to do. Should they submit to the Persians or abandon Asia? At this time, the Milesians with their allies came to help them. Thus encouraged, they fought again with the Persians who invaded them. After a longer battle than the previous one, they fled again. They and the Milesians lost very many men. After these great losses, the Carians received more help and fought with the Persians a third time. When they heard that the Persians were sacking their cities, they lay in ambush for them as they were marching to Mylasa. This was planned by Heraclides of Mylasa the son of Ibanollis. They attacked the Persians at night and slaughtered them. The Persian commander, Daurisces and Amorges, Sismaces and Myrsus the son of Gyges, were killed. (Herod. l. 5. c. 118-121.)

1068. Hymees the Persian who led his army into the country of Hellespont, defeated all the Aeolians, who lived in the region of old Troy. He also subdued the Gergithes, the rest of those ancient Teucrians. After this he became sick and died at Troas. (Herod. l. 5. c. 122.)

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 1069. When Histiaeus the Milesian could not get ships from Chios, he went to Mitilene. Here the Lesbians let him have eight triremes and they sailed with him to Byzantium. Here they intercepted certain ships of the Ionians, who came out of Pontus. These submitted to the leadership of Histiaeus. (Herod. l. 6. c. 5,26.)

1070. Aristagoras, Histiaeus' brother, was with his army at the siege of Mircinus, a city of the Edones. He and his men were slain by the Thracians who lied to him about granting him safe passage from the place. (Herod. l. 5. c. 126.) Thucidides, (l. 4.) reckons from this time that it was 61 years, to the starting of a colony of the Athenians by Agnon the son of Nicias, at Amphipolis. Diod. Sic. in his 12th book, says, was done in the 85th Olympiad. That period of time, we have here followed our relation of the six years (ending the year following) of the rebellion of the Ionians against the Persians.

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1071. All the Persian commanders united in one huge naval and land force to take the city of Miletus. Among the navy the Phoenicians were the best sailors. They were helped by the Cypriots (who were recently subdued by the Persians,) the Cilicians and the Egyptians. (Herod. l. 6. c. 6.) This threat seems to be mentioned by Diogenes Laertius in his life, in those letters which are attributed to Anaximines the Melesian, written to Pythagoras who was living at Crotona. He lived there for 20 years and then went to Metapontus and there lived the rest of his days. (Justin from Trogus l. 20. c. 4.) This was the fourth year of the 78th Olympiad, (as Euseb. has it in his Chron.) which takes up part of this and part of the next year.

1072. The Ionian fleet had 363 ships and the Persians had 600. Aeaces the son of Solyson, the tyrant of Samos and other tyrants of Ionia, who had been expelled by Aristagoras, were now in the Persian army. They tried to draw as many of the countrymen as they could from the Ionian to the Persian side. The naval battle between the Phoenicians and the Ionians happened at Lada, a little island lying opposite Miletus. Of the 60 ships that came from the isle of Samos, 50 cowardly fled home from the battle. Likewise 70 more of the Lesbian ships and others of the Ionians fled. There were 100 ships of the Isle of Chios which fought valiantly until at length having taken many of the enemy's ships and lost many of their own, they returned home with what they had left. Some were closely pursued by the enemy and ran aground at the promontory of Mycale. They escaped to the shore and after travelling all night on foot, they came safely to Ephesus. Here, the women were celebrating their feast and sacrifices called Thesmophoria, in honour of their goddess Ceres. The men of the city thought that the Chians were thieves who came to spoil them at that time. They attacked them suddenly and slew them. Dionysius, captain of three ships of the Phoenicians, captured three ships of the enemies. He did not sail to Phocaea, which he knew was about to fall to the enemy with the rest of the Ionian territories but sailed directly to Phoenicia. Here he sank a number of cargo ships, and robbed them of their valuable cargo. He then set sail for Sicily. (Herod. l. 6. c. 7-17.)

1073. When the Persians had defeated the Ionians at sea, they attacked the beleagued city of Miletus, both by sea and land. They undermined its walls with all kinds of engines of war and they utterly overthrew and razed it to the ground in the 6th year after Aristagoras began his rebellion against the king of Persia. (Herod. l. 6. c. 18.) Some of the Mileseans who escaped with certain of the Samians, started a colony in Sicily. (Herod. l. 6. c. 22.) The rest were carried away to Susa. Darius inflicted no more punishment on them and settled them in the city of Ampa on the Persian Gulf near the mouth of the Tigris River. The Persians took the plain and low grounds lying near the city of Miletus and gave the mountainous parts to the Carians of Pedasus to possess. (Herod. l. 6. c. 20.)

1074. After the taking of Miletus, the Carians were all quickly captured. Some surrendered willingly and others by compulsion. (Herod. l. 6. c. 25.) When Histiaeus the Milesian heard what happened to his city Miletus, he sailed with the Lesbians who were with him to Chios. He easily subdued them because they were greatly weakened by their heavy losses at Lada. He went from there with a strong party of Ionians and Eolians to Thasos. While he was besieging Thasos, he heard that the Persians were attacking the rest of Ionia. He lifted his siege from Thasos and he immediately sailed to Lesbos with all his forces. When he saw that his men were short of food, he sailed to the province of Atarnis and intended to forage for food there and in the country lying by the river Caicus in the province of Mysia. Harpagus the Persian was in those parts with a very large army. He attacked Histiaeus as he came from his ships at a place called Malena and took him alive and killed most of his men. After Histiaeus was brought prisoner to Sardis, Artaphernes crucified him and sent his head to Darius at Susa. Darius criticised them for not bringing him alive to him. He ordered that his head should be interred, as a man respected by him and the Persian nation. (Herod. l. 6. c. 27-29.)

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1075. The Persian navy wintered near Miletus. They captured the islands bordering on the continent and in less than two years captured Chios, Lesbos, Tenedos, and the rest. (Herod. l. 6. c. 31.)

1076. After the islands were taken, the Persian captains captured the cities of Ionia. When they were subdued, they selected the most beautiful boys and girls from among them and sent them to Darius. They burned the cities and their temples. Hence the Ionians were three times brought into bondage, once by the Lydians and now twice by the Persians. (Herod. l. 6. c. 31, 32.)

1077. Before the Phoenician fleet came, the inhabitants of Byzantium and of Chalcedon, which is opposite it, abandoned their cities and fled to the remotest parts of the Euxin Sea. Here they built a city called Mesembria. (Herod. l. 6. c. 33.)

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 1078. The Phoenician fleet sailed from Ionia and subdued all that lay on their left hand as you go into the Hellespont. What lay on the right hand in Asia was already subdued by the Persians. The fleet took Chersonesus and its cities except the city Cardia where until then Miltiades the son of Cimon, had been tyrant. (Herod. l. 6. c. 33, 34.) When Miltiades sailed from Cardia with five triremes for Athens, the Phoenicians pursued him and took one of his ships containing his son Metiochus. He was sent prisoner to Darius who honourably received him. Darius gave him both house and lands and a Persian woman for a wife. She bore him many children. (Herod. l. 6. c. 41.)

1079. When Artaphernes the governor of Sardis, found the Ionians fighting among themselves, he sent for some of each side to come to him. He made peace with them on certain conditions. He made them to settle their differences by arbitration rather than by killing each other and thus ruining their nation. (Herod. l. 6. c. 42.)

1080. When Artaphernes made peace, he surveyed their country by parasangs, as the Persians called every division and it contained 30 furlongs or 3.75 miles. He assigned a tribute on every such division which was paid yearly to the king. The rate was similar to what they paid formerly to Darius. (Herod. l. 6. c. 42.) That rate was first levied when Darius became king and he imposed it on all his empire (Herod. l. 3. c. 89, 90.) and before he was master of the islands. (Herod. l. 6. c. 96.) According to Herodotus, we observe that to facilitate taxing, the 127 provinces mentioned in Esther, were now by Darius reduced to 20, yet the bounds of that empire were still the same stretching from India to Ethiopia. One side was conquered by Cambyses and the other by Darius. Concerning the revenue from India, Herodotus states:

``Since the Indians were the most populous nation, more than all other men living that we know, they pay far more tribute than any other nation does, that is 360 talents of gold dust and this is the twentieth part or a Satrapie.''

1081. Since we find that when Darius was made king, he did not control India, as is evident even by Herodotus himself, (Herod. l. 4. c. 44.), therefore it is likely that when the tax rate was set by Artaphernes in Ionia, a similar tax was done all over the kingdom by the governors of each of the provinces.

1082. It would be considered then, whether that which is said in Es 10:1-3

``After this the king Ahasuerus imposed a tribute upon the land and isles of the sea;''

1083. That King Ahasuerus made all the earth and all the islands of the sea pay tribute refers to this very time. For as Thucidides, (l. 1.) tells us, (and Plato in his Menexenus confirms) that Darius, by the means of his Phoenician fleet, subdued all the islands lying in the Aegean Sea. Diodorus Siculus, (l. 12.) states that they were all lost again by his son Xerxes immediately after his defeat in Greece. It was after the 12th year of his reign that the scripture states that Ahasuerus imposed this tribute upon the isles. For in the war of Xerxes against Greece, all the islands which lay between the Cyanean Isles and the two forelands, that of Triopium in Cnidia and that other of Sumium in Attica, sent him ships. Diodorus Siculus (l. 12.) states that his successors held none of them all except for Clazomene, which was at that time a poor small island (Thucidides, l. 8.) and Cyprus. This is demonstrated by the tenor of Antalcidas' peace as recorded by Xenophon (l. 5. Hellenic.) This seems to me to be a good argument, that the Ahasuerus mentioned in Esther is none other than this Darius. For this and other such like impositions laid upon the people, the Persians used to call him "a crafty merchant" or "huckster", as Herodotus notes of him. Under Cyrus and Cambyses, his two predecessors, there was no mention of any tribute charged upon the subject but that they only brought the king presents, (Herod. l. 3. c. 89.) Also, we read in the 15th book of the Epitome of Strabo:

``The first that ever brought up paying of tribute, was Darius Lonimanus:''

1084. (mistaking the surname of Artaxerxes the grandchild and giving it to the grandfather)

``for before him, men paid their kings, from what every country yielded, as grain, horses, &c.''

1085. And Polyuenus, (Stratagem. l. 7.) states that

``Darius, was the first that ever imposed a tribute upon the people. Nevertheless, to make it more palatable to them, he had his officers set the rate first. When they imposed a very heavy tax, he took off one half of it which they willingly paid and took it for a great favour too from the king's hand''

1086. This story is mentioned also, by Plutarch in his Apothegmes of Kings and Emperors.

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1087. In the beginning of this spring, the king relieved all the commanders and sent away the young gentleman Mardonius, the son of Gobryas and who recently married to the king's daughter Arotozostra. He came to the seaside in Cilicia with a vast well equipped army and navy. He sent his army overland to Hellespont while he took the navy into the parts of Ionia. He put down the Tyrants in each of the cities restored their elected governments. Shortly after this, he subdued the Thasy by his fleet and the Macedonians by his army. His navy sailing from Thasus to Acanthus. While they tried to round the cape of the mount Athos, a mighty tempest destroyed 300 of his ships and over 20,000 men. While Mardonius with his army stayed in Macedonia, the Thracians, called the Brygi, attacked his camp at night. They killed many of his men and wounded Mardonius. When he had subdued Macedonia, he left and returned into Asia.

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1088. The next year, Darius ordered the inhabitants of Thasus, who had been accused of intending a rebel against him, to demolish the walls of their city and to send away all their shipping to Abdera. He then determined to see whether the Greeks would fight or submit to him. He sent ambassadors into Greece with the order to demand earth and water from them. He ordered his towns on the sea coast, to send fighting ships and others to send horses to him. Therefore, many in Greece and in the adjacent isles gave him earth and water. The inhabitants of the Island of Egina were the first to do this. (Herod. l. 6. c. 46. 48. 49.)

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1089. The Eginetae who were traitors to Greece, were presently attacked by Cleomenes, king of the Spartans. Demaratus, the other Spartan king, was expelled when a disagreement arose between him and Cloemenes. He fled to into Asia to Darius who entertained him magnificently and gave him cities and lands to rule. (Herod. l. 6. c. 49, 50. 61, 67, 70.)

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 1090. There was an eclipse of the moon at Babylon in the 31st year of Darius, 257th of Nobonasar, the 3rd day of the month Tybi (April 25th) half an hour before midnight (Ptol. mag. Syntas, l. 4. c. 9.) Darius removed Mardonius from his command because of the poor handling of the navy. He sent others to take charge of the war against the Eretrians and Athenians. These were Datys, a Median and Artaphernes, (whom the Scholiast of Aristophanes calls Artabaxus) commander of the horses, the son of his brother Artaphernes. As they were encamped in a plain of Cilicia near the sea, they repaired all the naval forces and prepared their ships to transport the horses which the tributary cities had provided. With the army and horse on board, they sailed for Ionia (Herod. l. 6. c. 94, 95.) with a fleet of 600 ships. Yet Plato in his Menexenus, counts only 300 ships and 500,000 soldiers. Lysias also confirms this number. in the Epitaph which he made, upon the Corinthian Auxiliaries. However, Emilius Probus, in the life of Miltiades, says, there were in that fleet, 500 ships; 200,000 soldiers and 10,000 horses.

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1091. The Persians sailed from Samos to Naxos and burned all its houses and temples. They spared Delos and went to other the islands. From there they took captive both men to serve them and their children for hostages. When the Casrystii refused to do this, they were besieged until at last they also were forced to surrender their city and themselves to the enemy. (Herod. l. 6. c. 95, 96, 99.)

1092. The Persians took Eretria after seven days siege. After spending a few days in settling things there, they sailed to the land of Attica and destroyed a great part of it. At last by the guidance of Hippias the son of Pisistratus they came to the plain of Marathon. They were defeated by the men of Athens and of Platea, under the command of Miltiades. He had taken command of the Chersonesus in Thracia. The Greeks lost 192 men, the Persians, 6400. (Herod. l. 6. c. 101, 102. 112. 117.)

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1093. The Persians fled to their ships many of which were sunk or captured. In both the fights, the Persians lost 200,000 men. Hippias, a former the Tyrant of Athens, died there, who had been the author of this war. (Justin out of Trogus, l. 2. c. 9.) The whole army of the Persians at this battle consisted of 300,000. (Valer. Mas. l. 5. c. 3.) Plutarch thinks it was less as he states in the beginning of his Parallels. Justin and Orosius following him and say, they were in all 600,000 men: Aemilius Probus in his Militiades, states there were 100,000 solders and 20,000 calvary. On the Athenian side there were 10,000 and of their auxiliaries out of Platea; 1,000, states Justin with Orosus. Probus assures us, that the Athenians, with the men of Platea totalled but 10,000. This significant victory happened on the 6th day of Boedromion, the 3rd month in the Attio calendar after the summer solstice according to Plutarch in the life of Camillus. When Phanippus was in charge of Athens. Plutarch has it in the Life of Aristides that in the 3rd year of the 72nd Olympiad, 4 years before the death of Darius. Likewise Severns Sulpitius, in his 2nd book of his Sacra Hisoria states the same thing. This was in the 10th year before Xerxes entered into Greece, (as Thuscidides in his 1st book of his history states and Lysias in his Epitaph of the Corinthian Auxiliaries confirms) and 10 full years before the sea fight at Salamis in the same month of Boedromion. (Plato l. 3. de Legibus.)

1094. Datis and Artiphernes returned into Asia taking with them their captives of Eretria to Susa. (Herod. l. 6. c. 119.) According to Ctesias, Datis was slain in the fight at Marathon and the Athenians refused to give the Persians his body.

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1095. When the Eretrian captives were brought to Darius, he had them settled in a part of the Cissian country called Anderica, 210 furlongs (26 miles) from Susa. (Herod. l. 6. c. 119.) This is described in more detail in Philostratus, in the life of Apollonius, (l. 1. c. 17.)

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1096. After Darius had spent 3 years in making greater preparations against Greece than before, in the fourth year the Egyptians revolted. (Herod. l. 7. c. 1.)

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1097. When Darius was now ready to begin his war against the Egyptians, and Athenians, he was required by the laws of the Persians to name his successor in the kingdom.

1098. Artobazanes, whom others call Artemenes, or Ariamenes was his son by Gobryas his daughter. He was born to him before he came to be king and claimed the succession by right of Primogeniture or as the firstborn. Xerxes, who was born after Darius became king by Atossa the daughter of Cyrus who founded the Persian Monarchy, was named to be the next king. (Herod. l. 7. c. 2, 3.) There was friendly rivalry between the two brothers. For more on this, see Justin, from Trogus, (l. 2. c. 10.) and in Plutarch, in the Life of Artaxerxes and in his Apothigmes and in his treatise on brotherly love.

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1099. When Darius had declared Xerxes to be the next king, when he was now ready to take his journey. According to Diod. Sic. (l. 11) he was on his way into Greece in the year after the revolt of the Egyptians. Toward the later end of that year he died after he had reigned for a full 36 years. (Herod. l. 7. c. 4.)

1100. After him came Xerxes, the 4th king of Persia after Cyrus. He trusted in his riches, (as they were indeed exceeding great) and stirred up his own subjects together with all his allies and friends to make war on the Greeks according to the prophecy of Da 11:2. In was not his original intention but was put up to it by Mardonius, his first cousin from Alevada, the kings of Thessaly of the family of Pisistratus and by Onomacritus, a Sorcerer of Athens. (Herod. l. 7. c. 5, 6.)

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1101. At the beginning of the second year of his reign after the death of Darius, Xerxes made an expedition against the rebellious Egyptians. After he had subdued them, he brought them into a harder state of bondage than they had ever felt under his predecessors. He made his brother Achaemenes, the son of Darius, ruler over them. (Herod. l. 7. c. 7.)

1102. In this year Herodotus, the historian, the son of Lyxus and Eryone was born at Halicarnassius in the province of Caria. He was 53 years old when the Peloponesian war began. (A. Gellius l. 15. c. 23.) affirms from Pamphyla. At that time, Artemelia, the daughter of Lygdamis of Halycarnassus, after the death of her husband, obtained the tyranny which her husband held. This occurred during the schooling of her young son, whose name was Psindelis, as may be gathered from Suidas, in Herodotus. She ruled over the Halicarnassians, the Coi, the Nisirians and Calydonians. After a while she came into Greece with five good fighting ships to help Xerxes in his war. (Herod. l. 7. c. 99.)

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1103. Xerxes gathered together from all of his empire, Egypt, Phoenicia, Cyprus, Cilicia, Pamphylia, Pisidia, Lycia, Caria, Mysia, Troas, Hellespont, Bithynia and Pontus, 1200 ships to meet him at Cuma and Phocaea in Ionia. He set out from Susa with all the troops and cavalry he could muster in the beginning of the 4th year of the 74th Olympiad. However (Diod. Sic. in the beginning of his 11th book,) merges the events of these 2 years into one and states this was done in the first year of the Olympiad. Herodotus, (Herod. l. 7. c. 21.) affirms that this preparation took place 3 whole years before this year but with a note on the previous chapter which cannot be consistent with the exact passing of the time. He says:

``from the subduing of Egypt, he took 4 years in gathering an army and in making his preparations. In the beginning of the 5th year, he began to march with a huge army:''

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 1104. He left Susa in the beginning of his 5th year, not from the subduing of Egypt but from his becoming king. Hence both Justin from Trogas, (l. 2. c. 10.) and Orosius follow Herodotus incorrectly and assign these five years. Julianus in his first Oration of the praises of Constantius, incorrectly says, that Xeres spent ten years preparing. More ingenuous than all these, (though he is not overly exquisite in his account) is Labianus. He says that between Darius and Xerxes there was ten years spent in the preparation against Greece. Since we have formerly showed from Plato that from the fight at Marathon to the fight at Salamis which was fought in the first year of the 75th Olympiad, (almost a full year after Xerxes left Susa), only ten years elapsed.

1105. At Critalis in Cappadocia, all Xerxes' forces met. From there he passed over the river Halys and came to Celaena, a city in Phrygia. Here Pythius, a Lydian, (Pliny l. 33. c. 10. says he was a Bithynian) the son of Atyis entertained him and his whole army in a most magnificent and sumptuous manner. From here, they passed by Anava, a city of Phrygia and Lough where salt was made and he came to Colossae in Phrygia. Here the river Lycus disappears underground. From there he came to a town called Cyndra in Phrygia, then to Lydia and then passed by the river Maeander. He passed the city called Callatebus and he finally arrived at Sardis. From here he dispatched his messengers into Greece to demand of them earth and water. That is he required them to surrender to him. (Herod. l. 7. c. 26-32.)

1106. In the mean time, the navy was at Eleus in Chersonesus. From here part of the army dug through the neck of the mount Athos for 12 furlongs (1.5 miles). They and the Bastinadoes were compelled to do this work. The neighbouring inhabitants were compelled to help. Bubares the son of Megabysus and Artachaeus the son of Artaeus, both Persians were appointed to oversee the work. When that neck of land was cut through and the sea let in, the channel was wide enough so that two large ships with their oars extended might pass each other without touching. (Herod. l. 7. c. 22-24.) Another part of the army built a bridge of ships over the Hellespont, where the sea from Abydus to the shore, on the other side, is 7 furlongs (a mile) wide. When the bridge was completed, there arose a fierce storm and destroyed it. Xerxes in a rage caused 300 stripes to be given to the Hellespont and a pair of shackles to be thrown into the sea to bind and fetter it with. He decapitated those who made the bridge and then employed others to work to make the bridge stronger. (Herod. l. 7. c. 33-36.)

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1107. In the beginning of the spring, Xerxes with his whole army left Sardis where they spent the winter and marched toward Abydus. As he was starting his journey, the sun stopped shining. There were no clouds and the air was clear. The day was turned into night. At this incredible sign, Pythius the Lyidan was terrified, (for it was no natural eclipse as the astronomical tables easily show) and besought the king that of his five sons who were in his army, he would leave his oldest out to be a comfort to him in his old age. In a rage, Xerxes had his oldest son cut in two and his whole army marched between the parts of his body. (Herod. l. 7. c. 37-39)

1108. Hermotimus, who was an Halicarnaslaean, was the most influential of all the other eunuchs with Xerxes. When he came into the country of Atarne, in the province of Mysia, he sent for Panionius of the Isle of Chios. He was a slave trader and a eunuch also. His wife and children came with him. He made the father castrate his sons and then had them do the same to their father. Thus Hermotimus was avenged of the wrong done to him. (Herod. l. 8. c. 105,106.)

1109. Xerxes and his army went from Lydia to the River Caiicus and the country of Mysia. From there they came into the country where old Hium or Troy stood. As he slept that night at the foot of the hill Ida, there arose a terrible thunder storm which killed many in his army. After this they came to the River Scamander which they drained dry. It was not able to satisfy the men and animals with water. When Xerxes was there, he went up to see the old habitation of king Priame. There he sacrificed to Minerva of Troy, 1000 oxen. The Magi that attended him offered cakes to the nobles. After this a panic fell on his army at night and he left there in the morning as soon as it was light and came to Abydus. (Heriod. l. 7. c. 42,43.)

1110. Here Xerxes took a fancy to see all his army at once. Therefore he had a luxurious hall built of fair white stone and he sat in the hall. From there he could see his navy at sea and all his army. He wanted to see a sea battle too. After that battle was done, the Phoenicians won the prize. The king took great pleasure in the battle and in the number of his men. He looked at all the sea of Hellespont covered with his ships and all the shores and plains about Abydus with his soldiers. When he considered the shortness of man's life and that none of all these men would be alive after 100 years, he wept. (Herod. l. 7. c. 44,45.) (Valer. Max. l. 9. c. 13.)

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1111. Xerxes sent his Uncle Arcabanus to be viceroy at Susa and there to take care of his house and the kingdom. He prepared to enter Europe. As soon as the sun was up, he held a golden vial in his hand over the sea. He prayed to the sun that nothing might hinder him in the conquest of Europe, till he had gone to its utmost bounds. When he had said this, he flung both the vial and a golden goblet and a Persian cimitre into the sea. When this was done, he sent his cavalry and foot soldiers to pass over the bridge on the right hand which was toward Pontus. On the left hand which was toward the Aegean Sea, he made all the bag and baggage, servants and carriages to pass over. It took a whole week to cross over. When all this was done, the navy sailed from the Hellspont west to a place called Sarpedon's cape. His army passed through Chersonesus to Agora and turned aside to a place called the Black Bay the mouth of the Black River. It was not able to supply enough water for all his army to drink. When they passed this river, the army marched west to Doriscus. This is the name of a sea coast and of a spacious field in the country of Thracia through which the large river Hebrus flows. Here they camped. (Herod. l. 7. c. 52-59)

1112. When the Navy came to this place, they were haled ashore. Xerxes wanted to count all his navy and army. According to Herodotus, his foot soldiers numbered 170 myriads, or 1,700,000 men. (Herod. l. 7. c. 60) His horses, besides camels and chariots, 8 myriads, or 800,000 horses. (Herod. l. 7. c. 87.) Among the commanders of his army, he mentions two of Darius' sons born by his queen Artistone. (I conceive to have been Esther.) The one he calls Arsames was commander of the Ethiopians from the south of Egypt. (Herod. l. 7. c. 69.) The other he calls Gobryas who was leader of the Maryandent and Ligyes and Syrians. (Herod. l. 7. c. 72.) Diodorus Siculus tallies his foot soldiers at 80 myriads or 800,000 men, less than half of what Herodotus says. Yet the number which Diodorus attributes to the foot soldiers, Cresias assigns to the whole army of all types. viz. 80 myriads besides the chariots. Isocrates in his Paenathenaica says that in his army of foot soldiers was 70 myriads or 700,000 men. Elian (l. 13. c. 3.) of his Various History assigns this to the whole army. Pliny counts them at 788,000 men (l. 33. c. 10) and calls Xerxes, Darius. Justin, from Trogus and Orosius, follow him, (l. 1. c. 10.) and state that Xerxes had of his own subjects, 700,000 men and 300,000 auxiliaries from his friends. Emilius Probus, in the life of Themistocles, says, that his foot soldiers were 700,000 men and his cavalry 400,000.

1113. His naval force had 1207 ships of which the Phoenicians supplied him with 300 including the ones sent by the Syrians in Palestine. (Herod. l. 7. c. 89.) By Palestine he meant all the sea coast of Syria as far as Egypt. (Herod. l. 3. c. 91.) In another place he states it had in old times been Syria Palestine (Herod. l. 3. c. 91.) and that its inhabitants were all circumcised. (Herod. l. 2. c. 104.) The Jews were also part of the Persian Empire. Josephus states that some of his countrymen were in this army against the Greeks. To prove this, he cites those verses of the poet, (Choerilus, l. 1. cont. Apion.)

His camp a nation strange to see, did follow, Who spoke the language of Phoenicia;
And did the hills of Solymi inhabit,
Near to a broad lake which on them doth border:
Whose heads were rounded and on their bald crowns,
Of a horse head the dried skin did wear.

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 1114. By this, the learned Salmasius also thinks that the Jews were meant in his Linguae Hellenistacae Ossilegio. Although Scaliger, (In notes suis ad fragmenta) and Cunaeus, (l. 2. De Rep. Hebra. c. 18.) and that most learned Bochartus (in Geogra. Sacra Par. 2. l. 1. c. 6.) takes them to be the Soylmi in Pisidia.

1115. Besides these fighting ships, Herodotus tells us that he had 1207 cargo ships, some of 30 oars, others of 50 oars a piece, besides smaller vessels and ships to carry horses for a total of 3000. (Herod. l. 7. c. 97.) Diodor. Sic. says, there were more than 1207 fighting ships, for carrying horses, 850 and 3000 cargo ships of 30 oars a piece. The Poet Eschyius in Persia brings in a messenger reporting the number of those ships in this manner.

I know that Xerxes ships a thousand were;
But full two hundred and seven ships he had,
Exceeding swift ones. So the fame doth go.

1116. Whether he means that the total sum of them was a 1000 and so the 207 swift ships was part of the total or whether both sums added together to give 1207. If so this agrees best with the particular catalogue of the ships which every nation contributed to this expedition as mentioned by Herodotus. It is not clear from the poetry what the exact total should be. Ctesias seems to favour the former opinion and so does Tully in the first of his Orations against Verres. Iscocrates in his Panegyric and Panathenaic Orations, agrees with the latter. Lysius in his Epitaph, says there were about 1200 ships, plus 3000 cargo ships. Justin must be wrong when he says there were 1,000,000 ships. Herodotus determines that about 241,000 troops were in the 1207 ships which came from Asia in this way. He has 200 men in every hold plus 30 passengers from the Persians, Medes and Sacaeans for a total of 36,210 passengers. In the 3000 cargo ships he places 240,000 men and average of about 80 per ship. So the whole navy consisted of 517,610 men. The number of the army was 1,700,000 foot soldiers and 800,000 cavalry. The Arabians who had charge of the camels and the Libyans who tended the wagons totalled about 20,000. The total number in Xerxes' forces would be 2,317,610 plus horses, boys and other servants and besides those who supplied the camp with food. (Herod. l. 7. c. 184.)

1117. Xerxes marched from Doriscus into Greece. As he came to any country, he conscripted all who were fit for fighting. (Herod. l. 7. c. 118.) He added 120 ships to his navy and added 200 more troops per ship for a total increase of the naval forces by 24,000 men. Herodotus thinks that his army increased 30 myriads, or 300,000. Diod. Sic. thinks the increase was less than 200,000. So the total of Xerxes' army in European and Asiatic soldiers amounted to 2,641,610 men. He thinks that the number of boys keeping the horses, servants and sailors in the cargo ships and others, was greater than the number of soldiers. So that if that former sum should be but doubled, the number of those which Xerxes carried by sea to Sepias and by land to Thermopylae would come to 5,283,220 men. This does not include the women cooks and eunuchs for no man can tell the exact number of them. Neither could he exactly number the horses and other beasts of burden and the Indian dogs with their keepers that followed the nobles in the camp for their pleasure. Hence it is no wonder that so many rivers were exhausted from the thirst of so many people. (Herod. l. 7. c. 185-187.) Juneval states in Statyr. 10.

We now believe that many rivers deep,
Did fail the Persian army, at a dinner.

1118. Therefore the less of a wonder that both Isocrates in his Panothenaic oration and Plutarch in his Parallels report that Xerxes took over 5,000,000 men into Greece.

1119. Yet in this huge host, there was not a man as handsome as Xerxes or one that might seem more worthy of that great empire than he. (Herod. l. 7. c. 187.) Like Saul among the children of Israel, 1Sa 10:23,24 so Xerxes might well seem to have been worthy of a crown. Yet, if you speak as a king, says Justin from Trogus, you will find cause to commend his wealth, mentioned before in Da 11:2 rather than by his character, of which he states:

``there was such infinite abundance in his kingdom, that when whole rivers failed the multitude of his army, yet his wealth could never be exhausted. As for himself, he was always seen last in the fight and first in the flight. He was fearful when any danger was but puffed up with pride when there was none.''

1120. Leonidus king of Sparta with an army of 4000 Greeks, interposed himself against him and his whole army of 300,000 troops at the pass of Thermopylae in Theslaly. It was called that from the hot springs which were there. In this epitaph by Herodotus we read: (Herod. l. 7. c. 228.)

Here against three hundred thousand Persians,
Four thousand Spartans fought it out and died.

1121. For thirty myriads is 300,000 which are the number stated by Theodoret (l. 10.) was the size the whole army (Diod. Sic. l. 11.) in this very epitaph, p. 26. in the Greek and Latin edition. For, the 30 myriads have 20 myriads, which make 200,000. Yet (p. 5.) he says, that the whole army consisted of a little less, than 100 myriads or 1,000,000 troops. When referring to this fight at Thermopylae, (p. 9.) he says that 500 men held off 100 myriads or 1,000,000 troops. Justin relating the same story from Trogus, (l. 2. c. 11.) states that 600 men, broke into the camp of 500,000, or as in Orosius, 600,000 men. Isocrates in his Archidamus says, that 1000 of them went against 700,000 Persians. Instead of the 1000 mentioned by Isocrates, Justin and Orosius say it was 600 and Diodorus, 500. These are those who were left when the rest of the Greeks were sent away. They held out against the Persians to the last man including their Spartan king Leonidas. Of this number, 300 were Spartans, the rest, Thespians and Thebans. (Herod. l. 7. c. 222, 224.) They slew 20,000 of the enemy. (Herod. l. 8. c. 24.)

1122. While these things happened at Thermopylae, various naval battles occurred about Artemisium, a cape of Eubaea. (Herod. l. 8. c. 15.) Eurybiades, a Lacedemonian, was admiral of the fleet of 271 ships, besides 9 others of 50 oars a piece. 127 were sent by the Athenians and Plataeans. (Herod. l. 8. c. 1.) Yet, Isocrates, in his Areopagitical Oration, says that the Athenians supplied only 60 ships. Emelius Probus states that the whole Greek fleet had 300 ships and that 200 of them were from the Athenians. Themistocles, Herodotus, Diodorus and Probus all say this battle was a draw, neither side winning. Isocrates in his Panegyrical Oration and Elian, (l. 2. c. 25. Varia Histor.) say the Persians were decisively defeated. The day when this battle was fought, is said by Elian, to have been upon the 6th of Thargelion, which was the second month of the spring with the Athenians. This does not agree with Herodotus, who (Herod. l. 8. c. 12.) says, that this was done in the middle of summer after the end of the spring when the Olympiad games were held in spite of all the trouble in Greece. (Herod. l. 8. c. 26.) This was the 75th Olympiad. Others like Dionysius, Halicarnaslaeus, in his Roman Antiquities, (l. 9.) states that it was at that time that Xerxes made war upon the Greeks.

1123. Four months after crossing the Hellespont with his army, Xerxes came to Athens. He found it abandoned by all its inhabitants. Callias was the ruler of Athens at this time. (Herod. l. 8. c. 51.) In this year, Anaxagoras of Clazomenae, a scholar of Anaximenes the Milesian, at the age of 20 was made public reader of philosophy in Athens according to Laertius from Demerrius Phalercus in his Catalogue of the 50 Rulers of Athens. At this time philosophy was first brought from Ionia to Athens, according to Clemens Alexan. (l. 1. strom.) who states:

``when Xerxes had taken Athens, he took also a multitude of books, which Pisistratus and the Athenians had there stored. He sent them to Persia. The the rest of the city, except the Acropolis, he burned according to A. Gellius.'' (l. 17. Noct. Attica)

1124. I do not agree with him for Herodotus states plainly that all the Acropolis was burn. (Herod. l. 8. c. 53.) Likewise states Ctesias. Diod. Sic. further affirms that the temple of Minerva which was undoubtedly in the Acropolis, was destroyed.

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